Eternal Immortal Dynasty: Starting as a Petty Official

Chapter 178 Observations from the Barracks: Selecting Elite Soldiers from the County (Seeking Monthly Tickets)

As night deepened, the two slowly emerged from the county magistrate's residence and headed towards the front courtyard of the county government office.

The surroundings were quite quiet, indicating that the officials of each court had all gone home to rest.

A few lights flickered occasionally, but the minor officials on duty at the county government office had not yet taken a break.

Upon exiting the county government gate, Zhao Hong and the others, who had been waiting there for a long time, led their horses over as soon as they saw the two of them come out.

Taking advantage of this brief moment, Zhao Xian looked at Chen Yuancheng beside him and said with a smile, "Lord Chen, the situation in Ronghuai County has reached such a point, yet the County Magistrate still wants me to go and assist County Commandant Chen. There's a reason for this..."

The words were not explicitly stated, but both understood the unspoken meaning.

"The county magistrate has a nephew who has reached the peak of Qi Refining and recently went to Cloud Mist Mountain for secluded cultivation!"

Knowing that not letting Zhao Xian know the details would surely anger him, Chen Yuancheng immediately transmitted his voice.

"Seclusion~"

After a moment of contemplation, a flash of lightning struck Zhao Xian's mind, and a look of shock appeared on his face!

The last and most coveted item at the auction that day ended up in the number one VIP box!

Zhao Xian and the others also knew who the owner of that private room was!

"Does the county magistrate come from a prominent family?"

"The Gao family of Cangjun was once a prominent and powerful clan, but in recent years, the lineage of Core Formation cultivators has been broken, leaving no successors; hence, they have declined somewhat!"

Chen Yuancheng then transmitted his voice again.

"Chen Jun, big brother!"

Zhao Hong then walked over and greeted the two of them.

"You lot, it's been months, and your cultivation has become even more profound!"

Looking at Zhao Hong and the four people behind him, Huang Zhong, Zhao Duan, and Zhao Bing, Chen Yuancheng's eyes also showed a strange light, and then he praised them.

These young men followed Zhao Xian, and their martial arts skills were so impressive that even he felt a slight threat!

Chen Yuancheng was unaware that before the auction, Zhao Xian had bought a few Dragon Blood Body Tempering Pills from Chu Shu while strolling around the market!

After Zhao Hong and the others consumed and refined the "Nine Transformations of Fish and Dragon" external cultivation technique, their progress was naturally very rapid!

After that, Zhao Xian bought some dragon bones and blood from Nanzhou at Yunlan Pavilion, boiled them, and made the four of them eat them.

Huang Zhong has now entered the seventh level of refinement, while Zhao Hong and the other two have entered the sixth level, and are not far from the seventh level.

After a few casual words, Zhao Xian and his companions prepared to head to Chen Yuancheng's residence to stay for the day.

Tomorrow I need to go to the county barracks to select weapons.

Silent all night.

The next morning, after Zhao Xian and his companions finished their meal, they went to the military camp in the north of the county, accompanied by Chen Yuancheng.

Rongtai County originally had two county constables, Xu Cheng on the left and Song Qin on the right, each with a squad of county soldiers under their command.

The military system of the Qianlong era was as follows: five men formed a squad, two squads formed a platoon, five platoons formed a team, two teams formed a garrison, two garrisons formed a unit, and five units formed a division.

As for the ministries, the next level up is the army, which is not a permanent institution.

This is also the origin of the term "部曲" (bùqǔ).

In other words, the vast Rongtai County, with its more than ten townships and a population of one or two hundred thousand, had only four hundred county soldiers.

When Zhao Xian first learned of this, he was quite surprised, but after the battle that wiped out the Yan family, Zhao Xian was no longer surprised.

The sky filled with magical light, the dazzling spells, and the awe-inspiring pressure all told Zhao Xian that the world he was in was no low-level martial arts world!

This is a world where immortality flourishes!

While they were pondering, Zhao Xian and his party had already arrived at the county military camp.

The county military camp occupied a large area, and the gate was also built quite tall. Outside the gate were four county soldiers with guns, who were burly and powerful, and looked quite tough.

"Halt!"

One of the county soldiers saw Zhao Xian and his group heading straight for the gate and immediately stepped forward and shouted loudly.

"I am Zhao Xian, the county military officer, and this is Chen Yuancheng, the county bandit officer. We have come to allocate weapons on the orders of the county magistrate!"

Zhao Xian sat high on his saddle and spoke solemnly.

Upon noticing the official seals at the waists of Zhao Xian and Chen Yuancheng at a glance, the county sergeant immediately bowed and said in a deep voice, "In that case, please wait here for a moment, gentlemen, while I go to report!"

After saying that, he immediately turned around and hurried towards the gate.

Before long, two officers clad in iron armor appeared before Zhao Xian and the others.

Upon seeing the two arrive, Zhao Xian and Chen Yuancheng dismounted and went to greet them.

"Your humble servant Chen Mao (Zhu Huang) pays his respects to the two lords!"

The two officers quickly took a few steps forward and bowed to each other.

According to the military system of the Qian Dynasty, the rank of squad leader was equivalent to 100 shi (a unit of grain), the rank of garrison commander was equivalent to 200 shi, and the rank of garrison commander was equivalent to 400 shi.

But these are county soldiers, and their rank is naturally not comparable to that of elite soldiers. The two garrison commanders in front of them are nothing more than officials with a hundred-stone seal hanging from their waists.

As for why the two of them referred to themselves as "lower officials," that's another story.

"Please rise, gentlemen!"

Zhao Xian raised his hand first, making a gesture to support the two.

The two men also got up, exchanged a few pleasantries, and then the group headed towards the barracks.

It was late morning, the sun was rising, and the barracks were quite quiet.

Occasionally, a few people would wander around the barracks, but their behavior was quite lazy.

Upon seeing this, Zhao Xian and Chen Yuancheng exchanged a rather subtle glance.

Rumors circulated in the county that the county soldiers were lax in their military preparedness and training, and these rumors were indeed true.

Chen Mao and Zhu Huang, however, did not seem to care about this. Instead, they led the group on a leisurely stroll around the military camp with great interest.

The arrival of Zhao Xian and his entourage also drew some county soldiers out of their barracks, eagerly awaiting their arrival.

"Look at that tall horse! That precious sword and jade at his waist—he must be a noble young master from a prominent family!"

Some county soldiers pointed and whispered among themselves at Zhao Xian and his entourage.

Zhao Xian and the others, whose cultivation had reached the late stage of Qi Refining, had sharp ears and eyes, and listened carefully to all these words.

A moment later, the two military officers finally led Zhao Xian and his party to the armory.

Upon opening the warehouse, a cloud of dust mixed with the stench of decay assaulted our senses.

Zhao Xian and the others immediately covered their noses and took a few steps back!

With a flick of his sleeve, Chen Yuancheng sent a gust of wind carrying dust flying out of the warehouse.

This scene caused the two officers to exchange a glance.

"Ah Hong, you guys go in and search according to the list we made last night!"

Zhao Xian addressed the people behind him and gave them instructions.

Zhao Hong and his three companions immediately headed towards the warehouse.

Before long, Zhao Hong emerged with a grim expression, bowing to Zhao Xian and saying, "The storeroom is empty of armor, the swords and spears are rusted, and the longbows and arrows are mostly rotten!"

"So you're saying there's nothing usable, right?"

Zhao Xian waved his hand, signaling Zhao Hong to stop, and said calmly.

Zhao Hong scratched his head and didn't continue.

"Gentlemen, what's going on here?"

Zhao Xian looked at the two military officers beside him and asked with a smile.

"It's possible that the soldiers guarding the warehouse were negligent, causing the weapons to deteriorate!"

Chen Mao gave an awkward smile, rubbed his hands together, and said with a laugh.

"One hundred and fifty spears, fifty ring-pommel swords, fifty shields, fifty war bows, one hundred and fifty bowstrings, and three thousand arrows!"

"If I remember correctly, this is the amount of weaponry this warehouse should have!"

Zhao Xian looked at the two people in front of him and said slowly.

Upon hearing this number, the two men's expressions changed slightly.

"This time I need to allocate 150 spears, 30 ring-pommel swords, 20 shields, 20 war bows, 60 bowstrings, and 1,500 arrows!"

"I will come to take over after noon!"

After saying this, Zhao Xian prepared to leave.

"Zhao Jun!"

Suddenly, Zhu Huang let out a low shout and looked at Zhao Xian with an extremely unpleasant expression.

"Mr. Zhu, what is it?"

Zhao Xian turned to look at Zhu Huang and asked with a smile.

"Where are we going to find these weapons in just a few hours!"

"Besides, do you really not know where these weapons went?"

Zhu Huang's eyes widened as he glared at Zhao Xian and roared in a low voice!

"What does it have to do with me?"

Zhao Xian nodded slightly, then asked with a smile.

"you!"

Zhu Huang let out a low shout, but he was so angry that he didn't know what to say!

"Lord Zhao, while we respect you, we are not afraid of you!"

"Do you really think the county magistrate and the two county lieutenants don't know where the weapons in the storeroom went?"

At this moment, Chen Mao also looked at Zhao Xian and said in a very solemn tone.

"Bozhang, don't rush, let's hear what the two gentlemen have to say first!"

Suddenly, Chen Yuancheng raised his hand and tugged at Zhao Xian's robe, giving him a wink.

Seeing this, Zhao Xian stopped and turned around to walk over.

"My lords, what can we do?"

Seeing Zhao Xian turn around, Chen Mao and Zhu Huang's expressions softened somewhat, and they secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Although they had never met Zhao Xian before, they had heard of him before!

He quelled the demonic and banditry within the county and also executed Wu De, a wandering warlord in the west, and the Wu family behind him.

Last year, they even wiped out the Yan family, who were notorious in the county!

In their eyes, Zhao Xiancai was a real murderer and a villain!

If they were targeted by such people, the two of them would probably never be able to sleep peacefully again!

Fortunately, the thief Cao Chen Yuancheng is still here; otherwise, I really don't know how this would have ended.

"Lord Zhao, these weapons have been here since the great battle between Qing and Nan provinces ended!"

Taking a deep breath, Chen Mao looked at Zhao Xian and Chen Yuancheng and said with a wry smile.

"It hasn't moved an inch in decades!"

"That's also reflected in the books!"

"These weapons are older than us!"

Zhao Bing, who had moved closer, was also quite surprised to hear this.

Zhao Xian glanced at Zhao Bing, who gave an embarrassed smile, walked to the side, and said nothing more.

"Three years ago, I remember that Lieutenant Xu Cheng led county soldiers to Wohu Township to suppress bandits. At that time, their armor and weapons were quite well-organized!"

Zhao Xian suddenly asked with great curiosity.

"There are still over a hundred soldiers in armor!"

Chen Mao gave a wry smile and said helplessly.

"So what should we do now?"

Zhao Xian asked again.

"Why has the county magistrate ordered Lord Zhao to allocate so many weapons?"

Zhu Huang suddenly looked at Zhao Xian and asked.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Xian immediately told the truth.

Chen Mao and Zhu Huang were both shocked to hear that Zhao Xian was going to lead his troops to Ronghuai County!

These two were not idle officials; they had some understanding of the situation in Ronghuai County.

"Zhao Jun is indeed a man of great courage!"

After a few breaths of silence, Zhu Huang spoke up with a word of praise.

"The weapons and equipment that Zhao Jun mentioned are something you couldn't possibly gather even if you searched the entire county's military camp three feet deep!"

"How much can you afford?"

After these words were spoken, the warehouse fell silent.

After an unknown amount of time, Chen Mao walked out of the warehouse.

"Lord Zhao, I will immediately gather the soldiers in the camp. Any weapons or equipment that catch your eye, you may take them!"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Huang followed Chen Mao out of the warehouse, leaving Zhao Xian and his group looking at each other in bewilderment.

"The military preparedness has deteriorated to this extent!"

Upon seeing this, Chen Yuancheng couldn't help but sigh.

"The Yunlan Sect didn't occupy Qingzhou with these soldiers; it was with Golden Core cultivators!"

Zhao Xian gave a wry smile and immediately walked out as well.

A moment later, hundreds of county soldiers had gathered in the training ground, their ranks not very orderly.

Zhao Xian and others went up to the platform and looked down, and saw that many soldiers had already turned white-haired.

As for weapons and armor, the armor was incomplete and tattered, while the weapons were not rusted, but they were mostly spears and swords.

Even bows and arrows are extremely rare!

As for shields, there wasn't a single one!

"I am Zhao Xian, a military officer, here on the orders of the county magistrate to allocate military equipment!"

Zhao Xian didn't waste any time and immediately stepped forward, shouting sternly.

"Remove your armor!"

At Chen Mao's command, the soldiers below the platform began to put down their weapons and take off their tattered armor.

"Sir, what is the purpose of requisitioning the armory?"

Suddenly, a soldier below shouted a question.

"How could a nobody like you possibly know such a thing!"

Before Zhao Xian could speak, Chen Mao stepped forward and shouted sternly.

The soldier, though hearing Chen Mao's sharp shout, didn't seem to care and just chuckled a few times.

"I am dispatching troops this time on the orders of the county magistrate to quell the banditry in Ronghuai County!"

Zhao Xian stopped Chen Mao, stepped forward, looked around at the soldiers below, and said with a smile.

"I heard that one of the Daoist priests in Zhao Jun's demon-hunting team was allocated fifty acres of land in Xixiang. Is that true?"

When the soldier saw Zhao Xian speak, he shouted loudly again.

"That's true!"

Zhao Xian was slightly taken aback, but answered truthfully.

How did you find out about this?

He then asked again with a smile.

"I'm from Tingxiang Township in Xixiang County. I heard it from my family."

The soldier replied with a grin.

"If I were to accompany Lord Zhao to Ronghuai County to quell the bandits, I wonder how much reward I would receive?"

"A first-degree beheading will be rewarded with one thousand coins, and will be rewarded every three days!"

Zhao Xian suddenly smiled and said calmly.

"Mr. Zhao, may I accompany you to Ronghuai County?"

The soldier stepped forward a few paces and asked with a smile.

"A second-rate martial artist, not bad at all, of course!"

Zhao Xian glanced at it and immediately replied with a smile.

"Since you're willing to come with me to Ronghuai County, then what about the duties of this county sergeant?"

Zhao Xian looked at Chen Mao beside him as he finished speaking.

"It's truly a blessing for this lad to be valued by Lord Zhao!"

"His status as a county sergeant will be preserved!"

Chen Mao immediately understood and said with a smile.

Anyway, those who are drawing salaries without working won't miss out on this one small fry!

"Thank you, Mr. Zhao! Thank you, Village Chief!"

The soldier bowed repeatedly.

"You're a second-rate martial artist, your settlement allowance is five hundred talismans!"

"Zhao Hong!"

Upon hearing Zhao Xian's shout, Zhao Hong immediately stepped down from the high platform, came to the soldier, looked him over a few times, and then took out four low-grade spirit stones from his sleeve, along with twenty talisman coins!

After handing the spirit stones and talisman coins to the soldier, Zhao Hong took out a carving knife and bamboo slips and asked a question.

"Name?"

"Wu Niu'er!"

How old are you? Where do you live?

"Twenty-three years old, residing in Maode Village, Xixiang Township!"

"Now that you've received the resettlement allowance, come forward!"

Upon hearing this, Wu Niu'er, clutching his spirit stones and talismans, happily followed Zhao Hong toward the high platform.

The soldiers standing nearby also showed a hint of envy when they saw the spirit stones and talisman coins in Wu Niu'er's hand.

"Do you know how rampant banditry is in Ronghuai County?"

Upon reaching the foot of the platform, Zhao Xian suddenly looked at Wu Niu'er and asked with a smile.

"I don't know!"

Wu Niu'er shook his head.

"Bandits in Ronghuai County have begun to gather forces and attack prominent families in the villages!"

"Zhao Jun, so what?"

Unexpectedly, Wu Niu'er asked a question in return.

"Once I take your money, I'll sell my life to you!"

"What if I die? If I return alive, perhaps Lord Zhao will reward me with a field and a house!"

"Not bad, he does have some guts!"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Xian smiled and praised him.

"Chen Jun, Zhu Jun, it seems your men aren't all old, weak, sick, or disabled!"

Upon hearing Zhao Xian's teasing, both Chen Mao and Zhu Huang smiled.

"Zhao Jun, I also want to go with you to Ronghuai County to quell the bandits!"

Suddenly, someone shouted loudly again!

As soon as these words were spoken, more than ten other people shouted in response.

"Hey! Young master, I heard that the Daoist followers under Lord Zhao receive a monthly stipend, is that true?"

Wu Niu'er, sitting in the audience, played with the spirit stone for a while, then looked at Zhao Hong beside him, leaned closer and asked with a grin.

"Ordinary Taoists receive two hundred talisman coins per month, squad leaders receive two hundred and fifty, and platoon leaders receive three hundred!"

"You're a second-rate martial artist; you'll receive the talisman money according to the sergeant's rank!"

Zhao Hong didn't presume, and said with a smile.

"That's not much!"

Upon hearing this, Wu Niu'er was quite surprised and said...

"It's already July. I wonder how many months of military pay you've received this year?"

Zhao Hong chuckled lightly, looked at Wu Niu'er, and asked with a half-smile.

"This~"

Wu Niu'er blushed and stammered, unsure how to answer.

"Ah Hong, Wu Niu'er, you two go and select some honest and strong soldiers, and give them some pointers!"

"Lord Zhao, how many people should we select?"

"Twenty people, I guess!"

"I will obey Lord Zhao's command!"

The two men bowed respectfully and then began selecting soldiers.

"Wu Niu'er, we're from the same hometown!"

The soldiers below the stage naturally heard Zhao Xian's order. As soon as Zhao Hong and Wu Niu'er approached, someone grabbed Wu Niu'er's robe and whispered something.

Zhao Hong stood to the side, but remained silent, only smiling as he looked at Wu Niu'er.

Wu Niu'er then pulled out a few talisman coins from his pocket and stuffed them into the man's hand, before shouting loudly, "Brothers!"

"The bandits in Ronghuai County are far more rampant than those in our Rongtai County; it's no joke!"

"If I'm not capable enough and die in Ronghuai County, how will my family survive?"

"Those who want to go should think it through!"

Wu Niu'er's words made some soldiers want to back down, but there were still dozens of people surrounding the two of them.

Seeing this, the two of them began to carefully select their items.

Before long, twenty people had been selected.

Zhao Xian glanced at them casually and saw that most of them were at the third-rate level, with only a few being second-rate martial artists.

As for top-tier martial artists, there wasn't a single one in the entire camp; top-tier martial artists naturally wouldn't need to waste their time here.

"Third-rate martial artists will receive a settlement fee of three hundred talismans, while second-rate martial artists will receive five hundred talismans!"

Zhao Xian said something, then pointed to the weapons on the ground and ordered, "Go and pick out armor and weapons for fifty men!"

"Choose carefully; these are all your life-saving tools!"

Upon hearing this, the twenty men returned to their ranks and began picking through the weapons on the ground.

A moment later, enough weapons for fifty men had been selected, and Zhao Xian then ordered the twenty men to be loaded onto the carts.

After bidding farewell to Chen Mao and Zhu Huang, Zhao Xian and Chen Yuancheng led the group away from the military camp.

After Zhao Xian and his entourage left, it was nearly noon. Looking at the increasingly lax soldiers below the stage, the two exchanged a glance and both sighed.

Once those elites are gone, what's left won't just be the old, weak, sick, and disabled!

"Let's call it a day!"

He waved his hand, and the two of them walked together toward the camp gate.

This damned military camp is nothing to look forward to.

After escorting the weapons, Zhao Xian bid farewell to Chen Yuancheng and prepared to head to Xixiang!

After leaving the county town, Zhao Xian summoned Zhao Hong and three others.

"Ah Hong, you and Huang Zhong go to Daqingshan Market and buy as many weapons as possible!"

"A-Duan, return to Wohu Township and pay your respects to He Qing, the township head. He will then send township officials to spread the word throughout the township that I, Zhao Xian, am recruiting Daoist followers. Those interested should go to the Xixiang Township Pavilion!"

"As for Ah Bing, go find your fourth brother and the others immediately. Once you find them, return to Xixiang immediately!"

"I will obey my elder brother's command!"

The four responded in unison, then turned their horses around and rode away.

After the four men left, Zhao Xian continued to ride forward on his horse.

Behind him were Wu Niu'er and twenty other county soldiers, as well as two oxcarts.

It was already noon, and it would definitely take more than half a day to get from the county town to Xixiang!

Zhao Xian did not allow the soldiers to stop and rest, but only to continue on their way!

As dusk fell, Wu Niu'er finally couldn't resist and ran a few steps to Zhao Xian, whereupon he bowed.

"Zhao Jun, we've been walking for most of the day, shouldn't we rest?"

"Order all soldiers not to rest until they reach Xixiang!"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Xian immediately replied with an indifferent expression.

Upon hearing this, Wu Niu was slightly taken aback. When he looked up at Zhao Xian again, a sense of fear rose in his heart!

Only then did he realize that the young official in front of him was a ruthless man who single-handedly wiped out bandits and killed countless people!

"I will obey Lord Zhao's command!"

Wu Niu'er took a deep breath, his expression became solemn, and he bowed respectfully.

"I have been ordered by the county magistrate to go to Ronghuai County to quell the bandits, and have been appointed as a military commander!"

"I will obey your command, General!"

Upon hearing this, Wu Niu'er bowed again and said in a solemn voice.

It wasn't until the moon was high in the sky that the group arrived at the village house in Xixiang.

Zhao Xian then led Wu Niu'er and the others to set up camp, and assigned two people to cook rice porridge.

By the time everyone finished their work, they were all starving.

Ignoring the scalding heat of the rice porridge, they hurriedly scrambled around the earthenware pot to grab it!

Zhao Xian, however, no longer stopped their disorderly behavior, after all, they had already worked hard all day!

"It's actually spirit rice porridge!"

One of the soldiers tasted a mouthful of rice porridge and immediately exclaimed in surprise!

Upon hearing this, the others immediately filled their wooden bowls with rice porridge.

"It's not entirely spirit rice; three ounces of spirit rice are mixed with seven ounces of millet!"

Zhao Xian, who was standing to the side, suddenly spoke up with a smile.

"My followers eat this three times a day!"

"What?!"

"Three meals a day!"

Another soldier exclaimed in surprise, holding the wooden bowl, looking left and right with an incredulous expression!

"Eat it properly!"

Zhao Xian chuckled and walked towards the campfire nearby.

When the soldiers came to their senses, they were all holding wooden bowls and eating rice porridge with gusto, and their eyes had somehow brightened.